A Hollow Gap
by Mysterious Loser
Summary: He said, "You have one minute before you die." Die? What? Just a moment ago, Ethan Kairos was asleep in his bed. Now Sox was talking. Wait, talking? Sox nudged something toward him. "Someone wants you dead, Ethan. Use this Hollow Pen to escape. NOW." ON HIATUS.
1. Discord in the Aftermath

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Time Hollow.

**A/N:** Finally, a category for this awesome game (I actually checked here when the game was first released, saw nothing, and just saw a category today. So maybe I'm a little late)! Anyway, this is my first Time Hollow fanfic and it's post-game, so there's lots of spoilers. Please let me know how I did!

**So I'll be writing** my stories in **order of importance.** If you want to see more of **this story,** please review and tell me so, or vote in the poll on my author's page. Thanks much!

**\/\/\/**

**A Hollow Gap**

**Chapter One**

**Discord in the Aftermath**

**\/\/\/**

The bell had rung.

Students trickled out from the school gates, a loud buzz from them escaping overhead. Most had left in groups of friends while others wandered off alone. Many would spend their after school time either at Chronos, pretending to be sophisticated, or down at the park. Some would venture to the library for studying, like Morris had. The sun hung high, a cloudless, blue sky shading in the after hours before dusk.

Ethan watched from his window as a group of his classmates passed by his house. If he looked out far enough, he could probably see Vin and his sister walking home from the corner of the street. He pulled his body in, his back popping from having stayed in that position for too long. He let his eyes slowly trail to his bed, adjusting to the darkness from having stared at the outside light for too long.

Mom and dad were at work, back to their everyday routine like they had been doing for years. Almost like…that was what they had been doing forever.

Ethan blew a wisp of hair from his eyes. _Probably don't even remember what happened two weeks ago._

Dad had, right? If he had, he hadn't really mentioned it since that first morning Ethan had seen their smiling faces at breakfast.

It didn't matter, Ethan figured. It was all right that everything had been cleaned up and that he had been able to save everyone.

…_Almost_ everyone.

He fell back against his bed, startling Sox, who had been sleeping. Meowing, Sox bounced away from the boy and onto the bookshelf against the wall with the window. He was still for a moment after that, and lifted his paw to wash it.

Eyes half-lidded, Ethan let his head fall so that half of his face was against the bed and he was staring at the wall.

_I'd go to Chronos today, but __**she's**__ working. Uncle Derek's probably there, too, helping swap the menu up for the evening._

That was one of his many problems. Others rained down on him, but _she_ was his most obvious one.

Then the letter had come.

_Uncle Derek…from the past…I wonder how he's doing. I'm sorry that I had to leave him there._

Their daughter went to his school now. Her name was…Karen…or something. He'd only met her for a brief moment. And he hadn't seen her since.

He had only thought of something else to add to the matter, but the shouting from outside distracted him. He rolled back over and gazed at the window, focusing all attention on the voice.

"—han! Hey! Ethan!"

"…Sounds like Vin," he rocked himself to a standing position and ducked as he stuck his head out the window.

A waving hand caught his attention and Ethan recognized his childhood friend. Giving a wry smile that he was sure Vin couldn't see anyway, he waved back.

"Hey Vin."

"Dude! Everyone's going to Chronos today! Why don't you get out of that dreary house of yours and come hang?"

Still smiling, the other shook his head, "I'm not feeling up to it today, Vin. I will tomorrow, all right?"

Dropping his hand in midair, Vin's face dampened and he crossed his arms over his head. "You've said that everyday for the last couple of weeks, man. What's up with you, anyway? No one's even seen you around school. Did someone in your family die?"

Ethan laughed, "No, nothing like that. I'm just not up for coffee today. Tomorrow. I promise." His hands were on the latch, ready to close the window.

"Ethan," Vin said, more seriously, "I'm not kidding around, you know. What's going on with you? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Vin. Just have a lot on my mind, you know? It'll be fine."

"We're worried about you, Eth." Then, finally breaking the ice with a smile, "Ashley and Emily haven't been able to stalk you, either. It's killing them."

Ethan shared the laugh and shook his head to sober up. "I miss them. And you guys too. I promise I'll come tomorrow."

"You'd better, Ethan!" Pointing a strict finger, Vin added, "I'll stand outside your window all day if I have to. And Ben will bring the sleeping bags for when it gets dark." Dropping his hand, he turned to walk back down the road.

Ethan watched him for a moment, the sparkles of his momentarily laughter fading. _You know, I think he'd do it, too._

\/\/\/

Some time after that, Ethan picked up a jacket and escaped from the dungeon of his room and made a place for himself at the park. It was a chilly day and nearing sunset, so not many people were around. He set himself at the rail to overlook the ocean, which was gently being rippled by the passing breeze.

The leaves above chattered against the wind and some fluttered to the ground around him. He turned his body against the sun, once, as it changed positions and shined a blinding ray in the boy's direction. Finally settled, Ethan inattentively tapped a finger against the cool steel of the rail and leaned over, enjoying his hair being played with every time a breeze rolled by.

_I remember when Ashley had been killed and Vin blamed me. I can still remember the pain I felt when he slammed the door in my face. I'm so glad that that past is gone._

Fidgeting, his face fell.

_But…it kind of __**does**__ prove something. In sticky situations like that, Vin wouldn't believe me. He'd turn his back on me just like __**that**__ Vin did. Throughout all of that, only Uncle Derek believed me. Why?_

A bird perched itself on the rail beside him and chirped a tiny opera for the boy. Ethan smiled at the gesture. "Just because everything's back to normal and I don't have the Hollow Pen anymore, that doesn't mean that _I'm_ back to normal. There are so many questions that haven't been answered for me. Like…where the Hollow Pen came from. I asked dad once, but he changed the subject."

Then, a tragic thought occurred to him.

_Maybe he doesn't know either._

"Well, it's good to see you up and about."

Flustered, Ethan whirled around to see Morris and Ben standing there. He quickly tightened his lips together, a bead of sweat materializing on his forehead. _How much of that did they hear?_

"What, Ethan?" Ben laughed. "It looks like you've seen a ghost or something."

Ethan's face fell. _At one point in time, you all would've been._

"Uh, no, nothing like that. You startled me."

"Well," Morris tilted his head, adjusting the dog hat with one hand. "No one's seen you around for a while, so maybe _you're_ the ghost."

Ben nudged Morris gently with an elbow. "Knock that off, Morris," but his tone was playful. "Our good friend has been cooped up in his room for the last couple of weeks. Is that anyway to greet him after his coming out?"

"Right, Right," Morris agreed. "Vin said he stopped by your house earlier, but you didn't want to come to Chronos."

"Yeah," Ethan tucked his hands into his coat pockets. "I wasn't feeling well. I just wanted to come out and get some fresh air."

Ben joined him on one side of the rail, his back leaning against it as he faced the other boy. "You haven't been feeling well all week."

"Or the week before that," Morris chimed in.

"You sure that it's 'nothing?'" Ben kept his eyes on the other, watching his every move.

_Trying to see if I'm lying or not, I guess._ Ethan cleared his throat and broke his staring match with Ben. He turned to the dog trainer and said, "I got some news that one of my aunts is in the hospital."

"Yeah? Which one?" Morris' eyes widened.

Ben quickly snatched up Ethan's collar, "You don't mean Kori, right? Is she okay?"

The name stabbed itself into Ethan's chest. He slowly uncurled the other boy's fingers from around his collar. "No, not _Kori._ Someone else…from my mom's side. You probably never met her."

"Or you're making her up on the spot," Morris accused. "Come on, Ethan, you told us before that your mom is an only child."

Ethan gurgled. _That's right. I __**did**__ tell them that._

"If you don't want us to know, that's fine," the dog trainer shrugged. "But you shouldn't shut your friends out, Ethan. We're just trying to help you."

The boy turned away from his friends. "I know. And I'm really grateful for that. It…It's just…" he shook his head. There was no way he could tell them about how he really felt. Not about the Hollow Pen…Not about Kori…Not about anything… "I gotta go."

"Ethan, wait!"

He brushed past them without another word.

\/\/\/

Mom and dad got home shortly after he had, but he was upstairs in his room when he had heard the door open from his open room.

"Son! We're home!" that was mom.

Ethan adjusted his ears from his position from the bed and put down the comic book he had been reading. There was the sound of another female, his father, and…Uncle Derek, maybe? That meant that the female other than mom was Kori.

"So, where's Karen?" Ethan heard his father ask.

"She's at Ashley's," Derek said. "Speaking of kids, where's yours?"

"Hmm…I wonder if he's home yet? Did he stop by Chronos?" his mother again.

"No, but I saw his friends. They were talking about how he hasn't been around lately."

Ethan cringed. Uncle Derek hit the nail right on the head. He had been hoping to keep his absence at school and around his friends a secret so that they wouldn't start worrying. Well…that was all ancient history now.

"Really?" his father seemed surprised. "This is the first I've heard of it."

"Me too." Ethan's mother went silent for a moment and then said, "Kori, have you seen him around town lately?"

"No, but then, I've been working at the shop often, too."

That voice. That woman's voice. It had been the first time, technically, that Ethan had heard it since she had saved her. It was slightly different, older, probably, but it was her nonetheless.

He wanted to sink into his bed and disappear forever, just like in the movies. If his parents found out that he hadn't been going—

Footsteps. He could hear footsteps outside.

"Now who is it?" He jumped off of the bed and threw his head out the window. Climbing the porch steps was none other than his homeroom teacher, Jack Twombly…the _real_ one, that was.

_…I'm about to go down in flames._ He could feel the sweat dripping down the ledge as he gripped the window tighter. His chest constricted each time that the teacher rapped his knuckles against the door and when it opened, Ethan sank to his floor, listening as his father greeted him and invited him inside.

"Mr. Twombly! Tea?" Ethan wanted to choke on his mother's tea. Anything to rid himself of the pain and guilt that he was feeling at that _exact_ moment.

"No thank you, Mrs. Kairos. I'm actually here today to discuss your son's performance at school."

_Oh God, oh God, oh God…_ Ethan crawled across his floor as silently as he could, eavesdropping from the top of the stairwell.

"Ethan's performance?" From his position, Ethan could make out his mother's head from within the kitchen looking back and forth to the other members of the household.

"Now, understand that before I begin, I think very highly of your son, Mr. Kairos, and believe him to be an exceptionally wonderful student. He has great potential. That's why I'm here today, to help him."

"Yes, yes, go on," his father said.

"Are you aware that your son hasn't been to school in two weeks, Mr. Kairos? He's called himself in everyday, pretending to be you, I assume. I know Ethan's usual performance, which is why I'm a little skeptical that you'd allow him to miss so much school."

From at the top of the stairs, Ethan had hidden his head in the crooks of his elbows, feeling his hot breath against the carpet.

There were whispers amongst those in the kitchen, and he could very clearly make out his mother's intake of breath. _That's it. Doomsday for me._

"B-But why?" his mother cried.

"I thought you wouldn't be aware of it, so that's why I took the liberty of bringing it to your attention. I don't want Ethan messing up his future for himself. And I asked his friends if he's been around lately. They said that he's been spending most of his time at home."

Ethan, pulling his head from out of his elbows, positioned himself so that he could see into the kitchen from the top of the stairs, but he prayed to everything he found holy that they _wouldn't_ see him.

"But…but how can that be?" his father took a turn to glance around the room to the many faces there. "He's always gone by the time we go to work."

"I'd imagine that he's hiding out until you guys leave, making you believe that he's at school," Uncle Derek threw his two cents in. "That's the way I figure it."

"Poor Ethan," Kori said next. "He's probably going through something that he feels like he can't tell anyone."

Ethan's eyes slanted as he watched them all in the kitchen. What a thing for Kori to say.

"That may be true…" Twombly tapped a finger against his cheek.

"But what? We've never mistreated him. Why would he have something to hide from us?" his mother asked, clutching onto the hem of her shirt with both hands.

"Maybe it's a phase he's going through," the teacher pointed out. "Something that he feels he can't tell any of us because it makes him feel weak or guilty."

"Heh," Derek smiled. "Maybe there's a girl at school he likes."

"You think so?" his mother appeared hopeful.

Ethan kept his eyes on his father, who was lost in thought and saying nothing more. Out of all of them, his father worried him the most.

_Dad knows things that they don't. He'll figure it out real quick. Shoot._

"Maybe we should just give him his space," Kori suggested.

"No, that won't do," Twombly said. "He'll just continue to miss school."

"Then talk to him, maybe?" Derek threw out.

"But will he take the bait? Maybe we should just be really nice to him and let him know how much we love him." Good old mom.

Still, his father said nothing. Ethan, leaving them to their discussion, slithered back to his room and gently shut the door behind him.

He got to his feet, sighing, and his eyes trailed to the bed. Sox was curled up with his eyes staring at Ethan, silently waiting for anything.

"Man, Sox, now what am I going to do?" he padded over to his bed, sat down on the edge, and reached out to pet his feline friend. He scratched behind the cat's ears, who purred in thanks, and Ethan sighed again. "No one knows what's really going on, do they? I wonder if even you do, too."

His heart sank. _Technically, Sox. You shouldn't be here, either. I sent you to the past, so when did I start seeing you again? …Maybe it was just the balancing out of the Hollow Pen. Everything's back to the way it was before._

His eyes trailed across his bedspread and to the wall. Every excuse he could think of was quickly sorted out for when his parents and uncle confronted him about his school attendance and anti-social behavior. They were always like that, worrying unnecessarily about him. The one who scared him the most was his father. Dad was _certain_ to know that his behavior as of late wasn't due to some "school-girl crush."

He waited a little while longer and the sound of the front door shutting reverberated against the ceiling beneath his room. Footsteps were accompanied and he peered out the window to see Mr. Twombly walking home. He gritted his teeth together in annoyance. His family would be paying him a visit any minute.

"Better savor the freedom I have left. I can see it now. 'Son, you're grounded for life. No TV, no comic books, no outdoor activities, and no friends.'" Ethan closed his window and sat down on the bed again, reaching down for the comic book he had placed on the floor. He thought about finishing it, but the mood had been spoiled and he didn't much want to read anymore.

Eventually deciding to toss it aside, he turned back to Sox, who had fallen asleep on the bed, in his usual spot.

"I wish I had your life, Sox. Nothing to do but eat, sleep, and take walks on the occasional Sunday afternoon. Where _do _you go during that time, huh?" He patted the cat on the head and closed his eyes.

About fifteen minutes passed before the sound of muffled voices caught Ethan's ears. He leaned in closer and recognized it as the sound of his uncle and Kori's.

"—leave it for him in his room. Pamela says that he'll be home anytime now." The doorknob twisted and the two barged in.

Derek and Ethan met eye to eye, both startled, though Ethan was slightly less surprised. In his uncle's hand was a white mug, presumably filled with coffee. Though Ethan should've been used to seeing this scene and Derek's face by now, his very presence was still new. Even the benevolent attitude kept the boy on his toes. Derek's stern face was now softened by a smile and warm eyes—something _any _boy who knew Derek prior to the "incident" would fear.

"Hey, kiddo," the older man was relieved of his "pause button," and stepped forward into the room. "I didn't realize that you were home."

Behind him, Kori followed suit, holding a plate of something that Ethan couldn't quite see. Her long, lavender hair fell in place behind her and she offered up one of the familiar smiles he remembered her having.

_It's strange…_ he bit his lip. _I only knew her for a short period of time, but seeing her as old as Uncle Derek, I feel like it's been longer._

Longer than she and Uncle Derek had known each other. Longer than they had _been_ together. It bothered Ethan to think that way.

It bothered him to see her mysterious eyes and her fluid gestures. It bothered him to see her move her long, slender fingers up to the plate and pull whatever was on it off and offer it to him.

_I shouldn't be thinking this way about her. She's not __**just**__ Kori; she's my aunt now._

"Ethan," she began and waved a cookie in his face. "I baked these at Chronos and brought some over. Would you like a few?"

Her eyes turned to Derek, as though giving him the cue. He jolted and held up the mug. "Uh, that's right. And I whipped up some coffee for your folks and thought that you'd want some, too."

Ethan inwardly frowned. _They're just doing this because Mr. Twombly asked them to._ But he didn't refuse the presents. He took one cookie from Kori and the coffee from his Uncle.

He didn't eat or drink right away. He set his full hands in his lap and stared at the food. "…Thanks," he mumbled after a moment.

"Think nothing of it," Kori responded and grabbed Uncle Derek's hand, a sight that Ethan still wasn't quite used to. "Your mother is preparing dinner right now. She'll call you as soon as it's done."

Leaving as soon as they had come, the two padded down the stairs, leaving the door wide open. Rolling his eyes, Ethan got up and set the cookie and beverage on his desk. "How much more forced could they have made that? They _had_ to have known that I overheard their conversation with Mr. Twombly."

But it didn't make any difference. This was the calm before the storm, a similar game he had played with his family for many years. He just wasn't sure how long this calm would last.

_They should at __**least**__ leave Uncle Derek and Kori out of it. It's just too embarrassing this way._

Pacing back and forth, his stomach was beginning to ache from stress and anticipation. His waiting for his parents to come with whips flying was like waiting for Mr. Twombly to hand out his usual tests, all the while of passing out comments regarding the difficulty.

"Painstaking," he said. Then he moved toward the door to close it.

"Ethan! Come downstairs!"

Leaning against the door, the boy quirked an eyebrow. Surely dinner wasn't ready _yet._ Kori said that she had just started it. Nevertheless, he sluggishly made his way down the stairs and into the kitchen, where his mother was slaving over a heated stove. His father, Uncle Derek, and Kori were all seated around the table. Moving his eyes to the dinner table, bread and butter acted as the centerpiece, accompanied by saucers, knives, and forks.

His mother didn't turn around to greet him, but began to talk to him anyway, "I'm making your favorite, Ethan. Teriyaki chicken, and, don't worry, I've got it properly seasoned just the way you like it. Bread and butter are on the table to snack on while you wait."

Watching her with a blank stare, Ethan caught the smiles from both his uncle and Kori on the right hand side of the table. _I can't believe they're being so nice to me. I did something bad and they're __**rewarding**__ me for it? I can't let them do that._

"Look," Ethan broke the ice. "Mom, guys, I _really_ appreciate what you're doing, but you know as well as I do that I don't deserve this." As he spoke, his mother turned around and the other three watched him carefully. "Nobody expected me to be home when Mr. Twombly came by, but I heard everything." His head dropped for only a moment before he looked back up with anger toward his family, "You know as well as I do that me skipping school for two weeks shouldn't prompt a reward, but an explanation and then a punishment!"

"Ethan…" His mother seemed so sad.

That didn't stop the boy from continuing his rant, "So it's true! I've been skipping school for two weeks now! Do your jobs as parents and punish me for God's sake! Don't brush it under the carpet! Punish me!" Whirling around on his feet, Ethan fled for his room, despite the calls for him to return being made by his family.

He slammed the door and fell against it, a heavy weight sinking into his chest. When he was finally settled on the floor, he pulled his knees up to his chest, eyes welling with tears. He clutched his knees tighter, burying his face in them.

_No one gets it. How __**could**__ they? I can't tell anyone how I feel because they don't __**remember**__ that past. I feel so distant…and alone._ He wiped at his eyes and laughed. "Guess I shouldn't take it out on them, right? They don't know any better."

_Because they can't __**see**__ a Hollow Pen. They don't even have any idea of what it is._

He stiffened when the knock came to the door, "Ethan, can I talk to you?"

It was his father.

The moment he had finally been dreading was here, and his father was going to unbuckle his belt and lay it over the boy like a fly swatter. Still, without defiance, he pulled himself to his feet, opened the door, and stepped back. The light illuminated the silhouette of his father once the older man walked through into Ethan's personal sanctuary.

Timothy Kairos did not break his eye contact with his son, even after he shut the door behind him. He appeared disappointed, and the ends of his lips twitched. Under such a gaze, Ethan was weak and timid. He braced himself for the explosion.

"Son, I'll be the first to say that I am saddened to hear that you've been skipping out on school for the past two weeks."

"Yeah, dad, I know…" Ethan mumbled, head dropping and shoulders slouching.

"Ethan, you can't let the Hollow Pen get you down like this."

It was like the blast had been subsided and there was hope after all. It had been so long since anyone believed him, Ethan wondered if his father remembered having the Hollow Pen at all.

_He never wants to discuss it or how we acquired it._

Gasping and eyes wide, he found his eyes slowly trailing up to meet his father's.

His father's.

His father's eyes were so dull and old that it made Ethan sink into his own self.

_The only reason he looks that way is because he used the Hollow Pen so much. …Will…Will I look like that, too, someday?_

"Ethan?"

"Uh…yeah?" Ethan blinked and forced himself to concentrate.

"Are you listening to me?"

Turning his head and shuffling a foot against the floor, Ethan nodded. Then he found the courage to look back to his father and said, "Dad…no one understands us." Timothy's face didn't change, even as Ethan went on, "I mean…yeah, we change the past to the way we like it, but don't you ever find that it gets…I don't know…lonely? Only a few people remember the changes that we make, and everyone else just goes on like it's nothing at all."

After a moment of no response, Ethan's hopes began to die away. His father stood there, hands in his pockets, and watched his son like he was expecting him to do a little song and dance. Maybe his father didn't understand at all. Or maybe he didn't remember what it was like to be the only one who felt this way.

His father always _had_ been hard to talk to.

"It's like…" Ethan didn't know why he was going on. He just felt like he had to. Whether his father agreed or not, it didn't matter. His heart weighed too heavily upon the matter to be ignored now. "It's like I'm not even here, dad. Like it's all dream and I don't exist. I don't fit in anymore. You don't feel like that?"

"Ethan…"

"I couldn't even _save_ everyone, dad. And not all of it fits into place, like where we got the Hollow Pen and why it was given to _us._" Ethan fell back onto his bed and slouched so that his elbows could rest more easily on his thighs. "I know it's my fault you lost yours in the first place. It's because I brought you over to my side and you lost your pen privileges. I'm sorry about that."

"That doesn't even matter!" his father spat, causing Ethan to jump and quickly glance up. There was the eminence of a chill running up his back. His father had pulled his hands from his pockets and was looming over his son. "We're not _Gods,_ Ethan. It's shameful for you to even think so. What we do with our power—"

"If that's the case, then why did you try to save Mary Onegin? Why did you try to prevent Uncle Derek from killing himself? And then you even left Kori for all of those years out of the time loop while you _promised_ to find a way to—"

"Is that what this is about?" his father snapped back. "This is about Kori?"

Ethan grunted. Nothing he could say would appease his father's stubborn attitude—not even some petty feelings for a long, gone girl.

His father took a step forward. "You're upset because she died, right? Well, that's not even true! She's downstairs at this very moment!" Still, Ethan made no sound. His father waited, gears running through his head, and he finally whispered, "That day…Derek told me that you liked her, too. Is this true?"

"What difference does that make, dad? She's gone now. And that's still not the point. You've missed the whole point."

"No, I haven't! You said that you feel alone and lost. Well, now why would you feel like that? Your mother and I love you very much, Ethan. And it's _not_ like I don't know what the Hollow Pen does to you. If you're going to let this eat you up, however, about Kori, then I suggest that—"

Ethan tossed his head back against the pillow and rolled over, shutting down what was left of the "conversation."

_I give up,_ the younger gritted his teeth together.

"…Son."

Ethan stayed still.

"Son, I know you feel like you don't have anyone in the world that can relate to you about this, but think about it outside of the box, all right? Think about the people who would end up like Irving Onegin if they _knew_ about the power of the Hollow Pen. Just let this be for now. It's best that they don't know." Timothy turned, reaching for the door, "I expect you to be up bright and early tomorrow to go to school. And _don't_ let me catch you ditching again."

His father left without waiting for a response. Ethan lay there on the bed, feeling worse than he had before his father had come in. Just as he had expected, _no_ one could understand him.

No one.

"Okay, so I've been skipping school for the past two weeks. And Kori _still_ bothers me. Why can't he be more understanding?"

In the end, maybe the only thing that was true was that he had no one to rely on. The only one he could rely on was himself.

"It was an open and shut case," Ethan sat up and reached over to his covers. He pulled himself underneath. "One minute I knew what was going on, and the next minute I didn't. One minute Kori was here and the next she was gone. I'm so _sick_ and_ tired_ of being the last one to know what's going on in this damned place!"

Turning to punch his pillow with a low growl, Ethan fell against it, wanting so badly to cry. But he didn't.

He just closed his eyes and waited for sleep to overtake him.

Sleep.

That was the only time he was happy.

The only _time_ that nothing could go wrong.

\/\/\/

The only time that…what…?

His body…his body felt so warm now, but not in a good way.

Something was wet—trickling down his neck, as though it were fingers gliding across his flesh. He shuddered.

"Wake up."

He didn't want to wake up. But his body was sore and aching. And wet.

"Wake up."

But if he woke up, he would be back in reality. Reality was bad. Sleep was better. So he didn't move.

"Wake _up,_ Ethan!"

He stirred, but not because he wanted to. Something was pushing on his face. Something with…claws…It was pushing harder and harder against him. Swiping against his skin. Something stung and his eyes fluttered open with a vibrant, "Ow!"

"Hmph, about _time._"

Ethan's vision was blurry and unstable. He couldn't quite grasp what was going on—only that he was drenched in sweat and that his body had overheated. He sat up, the room still spinning.

_Someone…woke me up…_

Shooting a glance to the door, Ethan was prepared to yell at the intruder for not knocking…

…But no one was there.

_What the…_

"Down here, Ethan! There's no time to waste!"

Worriedly, Ethan's gaze lowered to see a black cat perched on his legs. The cat's eyes narrowed.

"Huh…what the…?" the words died on Ethan's tongue.

"I'm sorry to make you do this," the cat…_his_ cat…! Sox! "Ethan, you've got about one minute before you are wiped _entirely_ from existence! Draw a hole and step through time, _now!_"

Ethan's mind was blank.

Sox was talking, he was about to be wiped out from existence, and just where the heck was mom and dad?

"Use this Hollow Pen!" Sox nudged something against his master's arm with his nose. "Use it _now!_"

\/\/\/

Uh…yeah. So there's my first attempt at a Time Hollow fic. How did I do? Should I continue? Please review!

ML


	2. A Place Out of Time

**Disclaimer: **Still don't own Time Hollow.

**A/N:** Wow, this story got more attention than I expected! Thanks guys!

On a side note to Martial Arts Master, I completely agree that any caring parent would definitely whip their kids into shape if they were missing school. Hell, I know that my mom and dad would've done the same to me. But I tried to take into account that Timothy is a user of the Hollow Pen, like his son, so he might be at LEAST a little more understanding, considering the circumstances.

Anyway, this chapter is MOSTLY dialogue, so it might be a little boring. Sorry.

**\/\/\/**

**A Hollow Gap**

**Chapter Two**

**A Place Out of Time**

**\/\/\/**

"Use this Hollow Pen!" Sox nudged something against his master's arm with his nose. "Use it _now!_"

Absentmindedly, Ethan's fingers curled around the pen, everything hitting him at once. He couldn't explain it. He thought that the worst of it would've come from just the Hollow Pen, but now Sox was talking…

Wait, was that _really_ such a surprise?

"You were…talking before…" his words ended on a low whisper, still hardly believing that he was having a conversation with a _cat._

The animal jumped back, arching its spine, "Look, I promise I'll explain everything after you draw a hole and step through it, but if you don't do it _now,_ then I can't guarantee your safety!"

_My safety?_

Ethan gazed down at the pen between his fingers. He never thought that he would have to use _this_ thing again. He didn't understand what was going on. Every time he expected answers, he just got more questions. He hoped for the sake of everything worth living for that _this_ wasn't going to be a mistake.

Throwing back his covers, Ethan took little notice that he had never changed out of his clothes from earlier that night. He jumped out of bed and held the pen up, drawing in a deep breath.

_This feeling…every time I used the Hollow Pen, I'd feel it. Here it comes again…_

With a shaky hand, he proceeded to etch a circle, the glow emanating from the pen as he had seen so many times before. Once completed, he was blinded by an overwhelming light, and shielded his eyes with the underside of his arm. Normally, he could see into the circle where he was going, but now he couldn't.

Actually…now that he had the time to think about it, he had never stepped through a hole and _stayed_ there, either. It was dangerous, and he had always been afraid of it. But what choice did he have now?

"Step _through_ it, Ethan!" he heard his cat call out over the noise coming from the hole. "There's nothing to worry about. I'll be right behind you!"

_For my sake, you'd __**better**__ be. _But Ethan was terrified. If Sox didn't go with him, then he'd be lost through some other time, more confused than he had ever been while using the Hollow Pen. Only Kori had been the one he could cling to, for she knew everything.

But Kori was gone now.

He brought up a leg and placed it into the hole.

Balancing himself on his other foot, he prepared to propel himself through the opening, but was taken aback when a force as powerful as a vacuum sucked him through, and he tumbled into the hole, screaming.

_This isn't supposed to happen!_ _There's __**supposed **__to be a landing after the hole! Why am I falling? …Where's Sox!?_

His cries echoed all around him, the wind rushing past him as various colors flooded his vision from within the hole. He plummeted, no end in sight, and his arms reached out, desperate to grab anything.

Grab…anything?

It was a _hole._ There was _nothing_ to grab.

All he could do was brace himself for the horrible impact…whenever that came.

"Sox!" he howled, tucking his body into a ball and flipping over so that his back would hit the ground first.

For some reason, nothing _ever _went his way.

Nothing…

…in the whole wide world…

Was this even…a world?

All this time that he had been traveling…Did that qualify him as a master of time and space?

He could manipulate time and change the horrible and unsatisfying past.

What _would_ that qualify him for?

All he wanted…

All he _truly_ wanted…

…were those damned answers that no one could ever seem to give him!

No.

That wasn't it at all.

Sprawled out on his back, Ethan found that he was looking up into the sky. Confirming that he was, indeed, in one piece, he allowed his mind to reel backwards.

_How long have I been lying here? What happened to the hole?_

When had he landed? He didn't even remember landing.

He hoped that no one had seen him fall from the sky, or else he'd have a lot of explaining to do. And just where the heck was Sox?

Rocking himself into a sitting position, Ethan grimaced as the blood quickly rushed to his head. He held a hand against his temple until the pain subsided and then closed his eyes. He swallowed his dizzy spell and then opened them.

Just as he thought, he was outside, taking an afternoon nap in the street.

Wait, afternoon? It was dark just a moment ago. He was in his bed, asleep, and then Sox disturbed him, and—

Whatever the case, it was daytime now. The sun hung over him, greeting him warmly. Ethan inwardly told himself that at least _something_ was happy around here, even if it _was_ only the sun. Though unharmed, his body ached and wobbled.

He _had_ to find out where he was.

Shakily, he pushed himself to his feet and hung there in case his knees gave out and he toppled back over.

He didn't.

Exhaling and positive that his body was going to be fine, he scanned his surroundings. Ethan was glad to see no one in sight, but, given his location, it was to be expected. Glancing down toward the ground, he gulped to find that he had been sprawled out in the middle of the highway.

He was next to a cliff, the railing protecting drivers from going off the edge for whatever reason. Ethan peered over the side, hesitantly.

He knew this place well.

"Clockwork Hill," he mumbled, his mouth dry. It was the first set of words he had spoken since he awoke. It felt like he hadn't spoken in a long time. "What am I doing on Clockwork Hill?"

Taking a slow circle, Ethan gazed down the other end to where the highway disappeared around a bend and couldn't be seen after that. It was same for the other side as well.

"Yup. Clockwork Hill, all right. The place where that bus accident took place and Mary Onegin…"

He shook his head, forcing himself to stop. He didn't want to think about Irving anymore. It was over with and done. Now, all he wanted to do was go home and—

…What was his house doing on Clockwork Hill?

Ethan couldn't take it in right away. His jaw dropped, his back slumped, and he thought that he was going to collapse in the middle of the road. Set back from the highway, where a cliff was _supposed_ to be, was a hilltop with grassy fields. Though it was a ways away from the highway, Ethan couldn't mistake that sad excuse for a color that was their house.

But…what was it doing _here?_

"…I don't believe this…" he found himself saying, eyes fixated on the house on the hill.

"You'd _better_ believe it."

Ethan whirled around, but no one was there. Then, dropping his eyes to the road, he recognized Sox by his feet. "Sox! But…how did you get here? I…wait…I…" The boy harshly grabbed his head in between his hands and screamed. "Just _what_ is going _on_ here!?"

Ethan couldn't believe it when he heard the cat _laugh._ He pulled his hands away and looked down again. Sox was licking a paw, still chuckling.

"Calm down, Ethan. As promised, I'll explain everything."

Pointing an accusing finger down at the cat, Ethan spat, "You can start by _telling_ me how you know how to talk! It _was_ you who spoke to me right after that happened with Irving and Uncle Derek, wasn't it!?"

Sox did not lose his composure. In fact, he purred and strutted in a circle around his master.

"Yes, that was me."

"_Why_ didn't you make your presence known sooner!?"

"There's no need to shout, you know." Sox placed himself in the middle of the road, tail whipping about. "I didn't see a need to tell you."

Ethan's eyes widened. "Didn't see a—! Do you know how much _hassle_ I went through because of that Hollow Pen? I thought I was going _crazy!_ No one understood what I was going through, not even my dad! If I had known that at least _you—_" The boy dropped to his knees, whining.

As he has felt before, nothing _ever_ went his way.

"Come on, Ethan, don't be like that. You still got through it."

Peering back up at his cat with darkened eyes, Ethan mumbled, "Every time I thought I had something figured out, I'd end up with more questions. Your assistance would've been _very_ useful, even for a talking cat."

Sox gave a low sigh. "Well, how about I start from the beginning, huh? I'll try to explain everything as best I can."

"Please, do."

"I'm the Sox from the near future. I came into the past to save you."

And that was how it started, Ethan remembered. Sox _had_ said something about needing to save him from someone who wanted him wiped from existence. It was also at this point that he _knew_ things were going to get much more complicated than before.

"Save me? From what?"

"I'm not sure." Sox turned his head, "I woke up early in the morning and realized that _my_ Ethan wasn't breathing. He was dead." The word 'dead' sent shivers up the boy's spine and he gulped.

"H-How?"

"I couldn't figure that out. So I had to come back into the past and get _you_, the past Ethan, and save you before it was too late."

The boy shook his head, already feeling lost. Why couldn't things ever be simple? "The future Sox? The future me? Are you saying that what Morris was talking about, those parallel dimensions or whatever, is true?"

Sox nodded, "Time and space are vast things, you know. Anything is possible. I'm sure you noticed that there are many 'me's' roaming around during your time, too."

Ethan pondered heavily on the matter, chewing on the prospect that Sox had brought to light. Now that the cat _had_ mentioned it, he _did_ wonder how Sox showed up at all those different places at once.

"So…you're saying that there was a future you, a present you, and…"

"And a past me in your time period, yes."

The boy rubbed his chin, "But, why so many?"

"Well, according to the chain, there _had_ to be a Sox you sent into the past after the events with Irving Onegin, right? It's like an assembly line, you know. Have to keep the chain going."

Ethan gave a low whistle and looked up to the sky. _That's right. That was __**me**__ that wrote that letter to my past self, and my future self wrote that letter to __**me,**__ saying that it was from dad. I suppose that that makes sense why there would be so many Soxs roaming about._

"Easy enough to comprehend, right?" the cat interrupted his train of thought. "Well, chew on this. I had to come back and save you, so I pulled you out of time in order to do so. The time period we are in now is approximately one week to _your_ past self's death."

Ethan stiffened when Sox mentioned the "out of time" part. He _knew_ what being pulled out of time entailed, especially when it had happened to his father.

"I…I can't use the Hollow Pen anymore," he realized, a great weight burdening him. "I've been disqualified…" A horrible thought came after that. He was pulled out of time like his father and Kori had been. How was he supposed to get put back into the time flow now? He'd be a wandering soul, like Kori, forever. He held his face in his hands again, not wanting to accept the horrible truth.

"Now, calm down, Ethan. _Calm_ down." Ethan peeked out through the slit between his fingers at the cat below him. "The Hollow Pen you used was _mine._ Unlike the Hollow Pen that _you_ used before, mine doesn't disappear _permanently_ after stepping out of time."

"…Really?"

"No. After a few days or so, I'll be able to let you use the Hollow Pen again."

A smile cracked at the boy's face, feeling that things were starting to go his way after all, save the fact that someone _still_ wanted him dead. "So I can be placed back into the time flow? That's great!"

"Well…" Sox looked away. "I'm sure we don't want to use the Hollow Pen to send you back until _after_ we figure out who wants you dead. It would be a waste to put you back into the time flow and then you just die. We've got to find out what happens to you, Ethan, or else you can never be put back into the time flow."

And, like all good things, his hope went up in flames. Ethan couldn't understand his string of misfortune. It had been bad when he had to save his parents, Uncle Derek, his friends, and even Kori. Now he had to save _himself?_ He had no idea where to start.

"So we're about a week away from my other self's death?" Ethan confirmed. At Sox's nod, he asked, "If we're in the past, why does everything look different? What's my house doing on Clockwork Hill?"

"That…is a little bit harder to explain. You see, there's a distinct time flow that holds a line for every person: the past you, the present you, and the future you. Once one of the 'you's' has been pulled out of that flow, that leaves a gap in time. Even if you _could_ use the Hollow Pen to change someone's life, there's _still_ that 'you' that has been left out of time, right?

"That 'you' can't die because you no longer hold any concept of time, nor can you get any older. So that's where _this_ place comes in. It's a Place out of Time, if you will—a parallel time flow to your original one. That's why you see your house here instead of where you normally live. Do you understand?"

The blank stare on Ethan's face proved that he did not. He was happy when Sox stopped long enough to reiterate everything in his mind. The town he was in now _was_ his town, except a parallel version of it, meant solely for people like him, who were out of the time flow. He wondered if people like Kori, his father, and Irving had seen the same reversed town _when_ they had been left out of time.

"…I…think so…" Ethan drew the words out, long and slow.

That compelled the cat to continue the explanation, "This world is virtually identical to your own, except that you're seeing it in a reversed way. Even the inhabitants here see it as a reversal to your original time. But everything is still the same. The past you is _aware_ of the Hollow Pen. He's feeling depressed, just like you had been, and…is probably skipping school, too."

The cat dodged a swipe from his irate master.

"Very funny," Ethan narrowed his eyes. "So, we're here to keep an eye on my other self and make sure he doesn't die, right? That sounds easy enough."

Sox shook his head, "It's not _that_ easy. Just because you can't die doesn't mean that you're invincible. We need to keep an eye on your other self, but if your other self recognizes you or touches you, it will cause a ripple between the two time flows and it will explode."

The idea didn't sound pleasant to Ethan, but he said, "Then, couldn't you just go back even further into the past in case that happens?"

"…You don't seem to have a clear concept of the situation here, _or_ how powerful time _is,_ either. If _that_ happens, your entire _existence _will be wiped out, from birth and all."

Ethan clamped his mouth shut. That _was_ a problem.

Sox was pacing back and forth in front of him. "We're going to have to change your name and your style up. You can't let anybody know who you are or why you're here. If you want to keep an eye on your other self, you'll have to go to Kako High, of course. Also, you can't live at home anymore, so you're going to have to find somewhere else to stay."

Ethan crossed his arms, frowning. "There's a _lot_ to this, isn't there?"

"And even though you can't die, you're _still_ human. If you stop eating and sleeping, your body will feel the fatigue and you'll just writhe in pain, unable to die."

"All right, all right," the boy waved the cat away. "I get it. So, what, I'm gonna have to get a part-time job or something? I can't afford an apartment, you know."

Sox was busy thinking about all of this. Everything was easier said than done. Ethan used his foot to draw circles in the road, sighing.

He had to keep an eye on his past self with_out_ letting him know who he was or touching him? That was going to be hard. And now he couldn't live at home. He wouldn't be able to eat or sleep.

_This is too complicated. How am I going to find a part-time job to be able to accommodate for all of this? I…_

Ethan paused, the most brilliant of ideas striking him like lightning.

"Chronos…" he said, staring down at the ground. "I'll ask Uncle Derek for a job at Chronos. I'll be able to sleep there after hours, keep an eye on my other self, and eat." Eyes tracing back to the cat, he asked, "Do you think that that would work?"

Sox appeared surprised, the idea tackling him as it had Ethan. But he answered, calmly, "So long as you don't call him 'Uncle Derek,' I'd say that you just came up with something amazing."

The weight that had wrapped itself around Ethan was slowly crumbling. Running the different problems through his head, he voiced, "So, I have to join Kako High under a new name, right? How am I supposed to do that?"

"Relax," Sox's tail tapped back and forth against his legs while he sat there, staring up at his master. "That's what talking cats are for."

"You?" Ethan eyed him, skeptically. "What can _you_ do?"

"Well, besides talk, I can do other amazing things."

"Yeah, now that you mention it, why is it that you _can_ talk, huh? And why do you have a Hollow Pen in the first place?"

Sox gave him the slyest look a cat could muster, and that was even more amazing than his ability to talk, Ethan found. "You don't need to concern yourself with that right now. Time is of the essence, you know. My ability to talk has nothing to do with your current task."

"See? More questions that never get answered." Reaching into his back pocket, Ethan whipped out something and held it in front of him. It was a small book with a pen snuggled within the binding.

Sox blinked. "What are you doing?"

"I'm writing down all the questions I have and I _expect_ you to answer them by the time this is all over with."

Ethan quickly scrawled something into one of the pages in his book. From out of the corner of his eye, he could see a curious cat edge his way around Ethan's leg, but no matter what he did, Sox was far too short to be able to see what his master was writing.

_Where did the Hollow Pen come from? Why do I have it? Why can Sox talk? Why does __**he**__ have a Hollow Pen? I'm sure that I'll find out the answers to these questions one way or another, or else I'll have a conniption._

Shutting the book with one hand, Ethan placed it back into his pocket and sighed.

_I've gotta recap here. Most of this doesn't make sense anyway. So there's a time flow in which there are many me's that exist. The 'me' of the near future has died, so the future Sox has come back to take me out of time, claiming that it's to save me. He's brought me to this parallel time flow he called 'a Place out of Time.' It's for people who have been pulled out of time—a reverse world of mine. That's why my house is now on Clockwork Hill instead of behind Vin's house._

_My current objective is to spy on the other me and keep him from dying. But I can't let him recognize or touch me or else it will cause a rift in time that will end my existence altogether. …That's about the gist of it._

"You look lost in thought?" Sox startled him back to reality. "Anything I can help with?"

_He says that, but he won't answer any of the __**real**__ questions that I have._ So Ethan asked, "What next?"

"Well, we're right in front of your house, right? You'd better go inside and get some other clothes so that nobody recognizes you standing out here."

Standing out…

"Wait, what about my other self!?" Ethan made a sharp gesture to the house on the hill, "He's in _that_ house at this _very_ moment! If he recognizes me—" Ethan wanted to curse his cat's negligence.

But Sox was cleaning himself again, coolly and delicately.

"Sox?"

"You _honestly _think that I would go through all of this trouble to save you _just _to mess up by placing you in harm's way? What kind of talking cat would I be in that case?"

Ethan cocked his head to the side, not sure _what _to say. The cat finished and moved past his master, trotting up the hill. "Your other self is busy brooding, remember? He's at the park right now and your parents are at work. I'd say you have about an hour before you have to worry about anything."

Staring after his cat, the boy found himself slowly jogging to catch up. "That's…very precise, Sox. I'm impressed."

"I told you. What kind of talking cat would I be if I put you in harm's way?" Ethan smiled. "We've got more important things to worry about. Be careful what you take so that we don't cause alarm for your past family and self. But we can't have anyone recognize you."

"Yeah, yeah…" Ethan craned his attention to the house that wasn't supposed to be here. But it was _his_ house, undoubtedly. It was just too much to take in.

"You need to think of a false name, Ethan. And probably get acquainted with your new surroundings. After that, we'll begin our operation."

Slowly, his cat's words began to fade from his mind. Though he thought he had grasped what was going on at first, Ethan realized that he had absolutely _no_ idea anymore.

Who would be trying to kill him? Was it Irving? No, no…he had already fixed that problem.

So who was it?

And why would they hold such a vengeance that they would _want_ to _kill_ him?

It just didn't make any sense.

But…because of that _grudge,_ his whole world was flipped upside down now. He was out of time and couldn't go home. He had to save himself. If he was caught up with his other self, his entire _existence_ would be destroyed.

Why couldn't things ever be easy?

"Well?"

"Cada," he blurted out. "Cada Nulls."

\/\/\/

Har, har. I couldn't help but be EXTREMELY predictable and cliché. Cada (pronounced Kay-Duh) is supposed to mean "abandoned animal or lamb," according to a source on the internet (Poor, despondent Ethan) and nulls is, well, null.

Sorry, I couldn't help myself. And I'm even **more** sorry that this chapter lacked anything exciting. I promise that it will get better next chapter. And I hope that what Sox was trying to explain wasn't so confusing or farfetched that it just didn't make any sense, if it was, please let me know!

…So, what OTHER questions should Ethan be writing in that book of his?

ML


End file.
